Outcomes in culture positive and culture negative ascitic fluid infection in patients with viral cirrhosis: cohort study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Ascitic fluid infection (AFI) in cirrhotic patients has a high morbidity and mortality. It has two variants namely, spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP) and culture negative neutrocytic ascites (CNNA). The aim of this study was to determine the outcome in cirrhotic patients with culture positive (SBP) and culture negative neutrocytic ascites.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We analyzed 675 consecutive hepatitis B and/or C related cirrhosis patients with ascites admitted in our hospital from November 2005 to December 2007. Of these, 187 patients had AFI; clinical and laboratory parameters of these patients including causes of cirrhosis, Child Turcotte Pugh (CTP) score were recorded.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Out of 187 patients with AFI, 44 (23.5%) had SBP while 143 (76.4%) had CNNA. Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection was the most common cause of cirrhosis in 139 (74.3%) patients. Patients with SBP had high CTP score as compared to CNNA (12.52 ± 1.45 vs. 11.44 ± 1.66); p < 0.001. Platelets count was low in patients with SBP (101 ± 53 × 10⁹/L) as compared to CNNA (132 ± 91 × 10⁹/L), p = 0.005. We found a high creatinine (mg/dl) (1.95 ± 1.0 vs. 1.44 ± 0.85), (p = 0.003) and high prothrombin time (PT) in seconds (24.8 ± 6.6 vs. 22.4 ± 7.2) (p = 0.04) in SBP as compared to CNNA. More patients with SBP (14/44; 31.8%) had blood culture positivity as compare to CNNA (14/143; 9.8%), p = 0.002. Escherichia. Coli was the commonest organism in blood culture in 15/28 (53.5%) patients. SBP group had a higher mortality (11/44; 25%) as compared to CNNA (12/143; 8.4%), p = 0.003. On multiple logistic regression analysis, creatinine >1.1 mg/dl and positive blood culture were the independent predictors of mortality in patients with SBP.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Patients with SBP have a higher mortality than CNNA. Independent predictors of mortality in SBP are raised serum creatinine and a positive blood culture.</p

Hyperuricemia: An Early Marker for Severity of Illness in Sepsis

Background. Uric acid can acutely activate various inflammatory transcription factors. Since high levels of oxyradicals and lower antioxidant levels in septic patients are believed to result in multiorgan failure, uric acid levels could be used as a marker of oxidative stress and poor prognosis in patients with sepsis. Design. We conducted a prospective cohort study on Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU) patients and hypothesized that elevated uric acid in patients with sepsis is predictive of greater morbidity. The primary end point was the correlation between hyperuricemia and the morbidity rate. Secondary end points were Acute Kidney Injury (AKI), mortality, Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), and duration of stay. Results. We enrolled 144 patients. 54 (37.5%) had the primary end point of hyperuricemia. The overall morbidity rate was 85.2%. The probability of having hyperuricemia along with AKI was 68.5% and without AKI was 31.5%. Meanwhile the probability of having a uric acid value <7 mg/dL along with AKI was 18.9% and without AKI was 81.1% (p value < 0.0001). Conclusion. We report that elevated uric acid levels on arrival to the MICU in patients with sepsis are associated with poor prognosis. These patients are at an increased risk for AKI and ARDS